Tag Archives: Revell-Monogram Model Kits

Aurora Monster Model Kits Are Definitive Monster Kid Collectibles

What can we say about the Aurora monster model kits that hasn’t been said many times before?

Of all the great monster toys and merchandise available during the mid-20th Century classic monster heyday, nothing rivals the Aurora monster model kits for their impact on Monster Kids of the 1960s and 70s.

From the mesmerizing James Bama box art, to the highly detailed sculpts by Bill Lemon and Ray Meyers, these model kits were true pop art. Kids spent endless hours assembling, painting and starting at these fantastic works of imagination.

This episode of Monsterama digs into the monster models of Aurora Plastics Corporation in all their versions of their monster model kits up and through to the Polar Lights re-issues of the 1990s. Sit back and get ready for a sweet trip down nostalgia lane, fellow Monster Kids!

Collecting Aurora Monster Model Kits:

Schiffer Collectors Guide to Aurora Model Kits

Over 450 color photographs enhance this comprehensive history and guide to Aurora models. The Aurora empire was once the worlds largest producer of hobby products. Here, corporation executives, sculptors, artists, and engineers who created Auroras models tell the story in their own words. Every model Aurora made is described in detail, with information on reissues. Published in 2007, market values are a bit dated, but this is still a very useful reference guide that I use frequently.Aurora Model Kits (Schiffer Book for Collectors)

Aurora Monster Scenes – The Most Controversial Toys of a Generation

Rated X…for Excitement! This book is dedicated to one of the great debacles of the toy & hobby industry. Written and presented by the men behind the Monster Scenes, then and now, this is a must-read book for fans and collectors alike. Andrew P. Yanchus, original Aurora Project Manager in 1971, opens his vault of artifacts and doles out his first-hand anecdotes of the series that went so wrong.

Collecting King Kong Aurora Models & Kits

Any article about collecting King Kong 1933 merchandise has to include these influential monster models from Aurora Plastics. Collecting King Kong Aurora Models is often the highlight of any King Kong collection.

It’s hard to think of any one thing that had as great an impact on the 1960s monster mania as Aurora Plastic Corporation’s monster model kits. The triumverate of Shock Theatre, Famous Monsters of Filmland and Aurora’s line of monster models almost certainly combined to create an entire generation of Monster Kids, who were lucky enough to be pre-teens in the early 1960s.

I didn’t come along until 1966, but I can relate to those Boomer kids, as I shared their wide-eyed wonder when I discovered the 1970 re-issues of these Aurora kits on the store shelves. For many, collecting classic monsters starts–and in all reality, could stop– with Aurora model kits.

King Kong wasn’t in the very first set of kits released. Kong made his debut, along with Godzilla and the Hunchback of Notre Dame, in 1963 and was an instant commercial and monster kid favorite, despite some serious scale issues (palm trees hit Kong in the ankles and Fay Wray was about knee-high).

The following is a complete listing of Aurora’s King Kong models and variations:

Recommended Reference Guide:

This book is a must-have for monster model kit collectors, and a good read for any monster kid who simply wants to learn more about these influential collectibles on the 1960s/70s monster craze.

While I’d love to see an updated edition (2nd edition was released in 2006) it has an excellent Kit Directory categorizing every kit and variation and providing useful detail to help in identifying the age / value of kits you are considering buying. This exhaustive catalog of every make/model is useful and timeless. For collectors, the price range to buy these kits today may be slightly dated, but the information on determining the age of the model kit is extremely useful when considering a purchase.